Concert Review: Jukebox the Ghost, Savoir Adore, Lincoln Hall, Chicago, 7/8/12

Posted on July 13, 2012 by Celeste in Concerts | Leave a comment

There are some things that just defy the limits of understanding of the mind: the boundless enormity of the universe, the diversity of life at the bottom of the ocean, the quantity of atoms that make up the entirety of the galaxy, and, most mind-bogglingly shocking of all, the fact that I can get my hands on a pair of Jukebox the Ghost tickets without literally, physically fighting somebody for them.

Whenever Jukebox rolls into town I’m sure this will be the time that every other living soul in Chicago comes to the realization that this band is the best thing since sliced bread (arguably better – who doesn’t love a good dinner roll?) and there will be riots in the streets when tickets are released. Yet somehow, every time tickets go on sale, all I have to do is click that buy button and they’re mine – In.con.ceivable. And yes, in this instance, that word means exactly what I think it means.

Their show Sunday night at Lincoln Hall was nothing short of magical, which is all that I expect from them at this point. Openers Now Now and Savoir Adore kicked off the night right, setting the mood with their particular brand of indie rock and fantasy pop. I was especially taken with ‘loveliest creatures’ by Savoir Adore, which included a synchronized dance that entailed the flapping of arms on “you are the loveliest creature that I ever did see.”

Jukebox the Ghost took the stage the way they always do – with understated good nature, smiling, waving and calling back to their fans’ cheers. There might not be riots and tear gas when tickets are released, but their fan base does appear to be growing (in terms of quantity as well as height, I swear there wasn’t a man under 6 feet in that place), and the venue was chock full of happy fans wiggling in anticipation of yet another amazing show. They weren’t disappointed.
The band started out with ‘Adulthood’, one of my favorites off of their new album ‘Safe Travels’ which was released late last month, and which half of the crowd had already bought and memorized (no shame 2012 – myself included). They also worked their way through classics such as “Victoria” “Schizophrenia” “Good Day” and their signature song “Hold it in.” There simply isn’t a song that this band plays that I dislike – slow, fast, bubbly, angry, dark, light, intense, soft, it doesn’t matter. They bring their distinctive Jukebox tint to everything they do, and with pianist Ben’s soaring falsetto, guitarist Tommy’s powerful riffs and always amusing facial expressions, and drummer Jesse’s “just happy to be here” smile and solid beat they can do no wrong.

Billboard recently did a piece on the band in which their manager is quoted as saying “these guys are honestly the hardest working band I know.” I believe it – Jukebox has come through Chicago on tour six separate times since I moved here two years ago. If they come through your part of town, go see them only if you can deal with so much happiness your head might explode. But if you’re in Chicago and you take the last ticket before I get mine, be warned that it will be on.

Concert Review: Beat Connection with White Arrows, The Drake July 8

Posted on July 13, 2012 by lauren in Concerts | Leave a comment

Sunday is the day you want to sleep off that hangover, relax and get ready for the long horrific week at work. Instead I manned up, put on my dancin’ shoes and hit The Drake Hotel for Beat Connection with White Arrows and Teen Daze. We unfortunately missed Teen Daze, sorry dudes, your recordings are pretty great and I wanted to see what you brought to your live set.

We did manage to catch White Arrows though, which was a pleasant surprise. It’s always great when you catch a band you’ve never heard of and then suddenly they make your playlist. White Arrows are based out of Los Angeles and have quite an interesting back story to them. Guitarist and vocalist Mickey Church was born blind, describing the world  as an “impressionistic smear,”  until he worked very hard with medical professionals to regain his sight at 11 years old. In a world where all your senses are heightened, music can become like magic and there began his creation of this magic. I read a review of their album in The Guardian, where the reviewer stated his disappointment with the album due to Church’s past, he had been expecting something that would sound heightened and out of this world. To this I have to say, yes, they can sound like a cross between The Strokes, and MGMT with their own little twist, yes it is not fantastical, over the top or incredibly unique. But in this decade, nothing is ever original, and with the internet as a DIY self marketing tool, anyone can be a band, book their own show, grab some electronics and call themselves a band. White Arrows were incredibly strong and tight as a band, each song started in a completely different manner, where you didn’t know what to expect. Also the world of art and music is subjective, one persons magic is not another persons.

Beat Connection have seriously upped their game since their debut Surf Noir EP, back in 2010. Previously seeing them on KEXP live, they were just a duo, manning the synth, electronics and sometimes throwing in guitar. Now they’ve expanded into a four piece, drummer, guitarist and vocals (mighty fine vocals might I add), and then beefed up, more confident sounding synth and electronics. Definitely a band that has grown and found their place in this vast music world. Their new vocalist looks like a guy you would find hanging out busking in Vancouver, or Seattle (where they’re from), singing some good ol’ fashioned blues. Funny enough he’s lending his vocals to an electronic “surf pop” type band, which in theory does not “compute”, but actually works very well. His voice is flawless actually, he didn’t miss a beat, and as they moved further into their set, the crowd picked up their feet a little more, and a little more until almost every hungover brain in there was dancing to the mood altering infectious sounds.

For the encore, Beat Connection brought Teen Daze and White Arrows on stage to do an amazing  cover of the Talking Heads “This Must Be The Place” , and yes that night, it was the place.

Song of the Day: Electric Guest – Troubleman

Posted on July 12, 2012 by Ricky in Song of the Day | Leave a comment

LA duo Electric Guest has had their share of supporters and detractors, mainly because of the connections of band member Asa Taccone to his brother, Jorma one of the Lonely Island members. OBVIOUSLY this connection help lead the duo to mega producer Danger Mouse and obviously this connection help set them on what was a supposed path to greatness (most probably thought they’d be like the other LA band from last year, Foster The People). Well, so far it’s July and their tracks aren’t on every radio station out there so that hasn’t quite happened (yet).

Their debut album Mondo is a mellow chill out affair and yes, Danger Mouse’s influence is every where. Some parts sound like bits discarded from the Broken Bells record, but whatever, the man obviously knows what he is doing. The album sounds good.

Troubleman is one of the tracks off the record, it’s 9 minutes long and it’s one of those nine minute tracks where you don’t notice it’s nine minutes. It’s got nice harmonies, catchy melody and a really chill vibe. I feel like I should be walking along a highway, lost and hopeless, somewhere in the Southwest while listening to this song. I don’t know why. Have a listen.

Roskilde Review Day 4: Nasum, H2O, Santigold, July 8, Denmark

Posted on July 12, 2012 by Paul in Concerts | Leave a comment

At one point during Machine Head’s mainstage set, frontman Rob Flynn complimented Roskilde for it’s diversity and inclusiveness, noting how all kinds of genres come together and everyone supports everyone else. He commented on how the first time they played there, the band went on right before Willie Nelson. He seemed especially impressed that Willie watched their whole set and said that they, in turn watched his.  Because he’s Willie Nelson. “That’s the power of music,” said Flynn, and it really is true. Roskilde is the kind of festival where anything goes, where toddlers and grandparents enjoy a Refused show or some teenagers take in a set by Ars Nova, a vocal ensemble dedicated to the music of composers like Philip Glass and Steve Reich. Music is just music at Roskilde, regardless of genre divisions. That dedication to diversity meant that on the final day of the festival, I took in a bit of everything, from the choral music of Ars Nova to the swampy New Orleans funk of Dr. John to Bjork (Bjork is her own genre) to the extreme metal of resurrected grindcore legends Nasum.

The Swedes lost their vocalist Mieszko Talarcyk in the tsunami of 2004, making a true reunion impossible, and in the words of Nasum’s remaining members, it wasn’t really a reunion at all. “You thought Nasum was dead? We are. This is not resurrection. It’s farewell, for good.” So said the band in a statement announcing their farewell tour/celebration of what would have been their 20th anniversary. ‘Nuff said.  With Rotten Sound  vocalist Keijo Ninimaa taking Talarcyk’s place, the band was ready to say goodbye to their fans and apparently enjoying themselves immensely in the process. You can’t really tell from the photo above, but their guitarist is quite possibly the happiest guy in metal. He looked so excited and stoked to be playing. When he wasn’t grinning from ear to ear, he was making metal faces, licking his guitar, lifting his guitar in the air triumphantly, and often spitting in the air then trying (and always failing) to catch it in his mouth. The rest of the band was no less intense as they blew through their songs at a breakneck pace with incredible passion. I know the Refused reunion was way more heavily hyped and it’s obviously not a competition, but for the record, as much as I enjoyed Refused, as far as reunited Swedes making heavy music go, Nasum were better.

Also passionate about their music were ’90s NYHC survivors H2O, who offered up a set of catchy. positive, melodic hardcore. Echoing Rob Flynn`s comments, singer Toby Moore was preaching the power of how music, specifically hardcore in his case, can have a huge impact on the course of one’s life.  “Because of this music, I haven`t had any drugs or alcohol for 42 years. I haven’t eaten meat since 1988.” They then launched into “What Happened,” a lament for the state of punk today. A totally high energy set.

Also high energy and ridiculously fun was Santigold‘s set on the Arena Stage. This woman knows how to put on one hell of a show. Since Ricky`s already written at length about the greatness of her shows in the past, I won’t go into great detail on the specifics but based on the descriptions of those shows, it was business as usual for Santigold. Maybe even better. Santigold is an assured performer, her backup band is great, and her backup singers/dancers were, well, great. They kind of reminded me in some way of the S1W guys who used to appear onstage with Public Enemy. They somehow kept a straight face no matter how crazy their dance moves. Speaking of dance moves, the most memorable moment in Santigold’s set almost became it’s downfall. When she invited the”best dancers” in the crowd to come onstage, the obliging security crew just kept letting more and more people through. 

“Guys, no more,” she pleaded as more and more bodies flooded the stage. That said, once they did get onstage, they had some pretty impressive moves and Santi was totally feeding off their energy and really stepping up her game in response. “I remember you guys now,” she said, recalling when she played Roskilde a couple of years ago and echoed a sentiment repeated by a number of performers throughout the course of the festival – that this crowd is one of the best crowds they’ve ever played to. I know a lot of the time, they’re just saying that, but at Roskilde, I get the feeling that they’re not just saying that.

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